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Latest Intelligence is a premium content section developed for AGB members only featuring in-depth articles on relevant items of interest across the multiple Asia Pacific Gaming jurisdictions. AGB relies on an extensive network of regional advisors and contributors to ensure that the published content is real, topical and based on fact.

The Russian gambling zone of Primorye, which has not been developing as fast as anticipated, is stepping up its efforts to attract more investors as part of an ambitious plan to almost treble visitor numbers by 2025. The company developing the zone is seeking expressions of interest to auction three plots of vacant land and has held talks with groups from Russia, Europe and China.

Australian operators are concerned a point of consumption tax introduced in South Australia may go national, which they say could potentially render the wagering industry unprofitable. The measure is an attempt to tax money where it is actually earned, effectively preventing online companies from enjoying tax arbitrage by basing their operations in a low tax state while offering their services across the country.

The last five years have seen a tumultuous business environment for casino operators in Australasia. Barely five years ago, CFOs of two of the largest concessionaires in Macau were predicting annual revenues in excess of US$100 billion by 2020, driven by the China VIPs. Attracted by China's massive potential many of the region's casino operators placed their focus on the one market. Now that's changing and marketing strategies need to change too.

As operators around Asia vye for licenses in new markets, one corporate social responsibility expert suggests they should change their approach. Jan Jones Blackhurst, executive vice president, public policy and corporate social responsibility, at Caesars Entertainment says not enough is being done to explain what an IR is and the benefits it can bring to society. Not only can a good CSR program help to alleviate perceptions about gambling harm, it can also be a revenue driver.

The push to legalize casinos in Thailand appears to be gathering momentum, though experts say any reforms are unlikely to have much of an impact on the thriving illegal market, which is estimated at more than $5 billion a year. Academics in the country, who focus on gaming, say there is increasing confidence that the issue of casinos will be raised again after the next general election, expected in late 2018. It would be the most significant step in gaming industry reforms since Thailand...

In just three years, the first of the licenses awarded to Macau’s concessionaires expire and, despite the billions of dollars invested by the operators in the market, there is still no clarity over the renewal process. There is no mechanism under the current law for automatic renewal which, as the deadline approaches, is leading to increasing concern in the market as to the tack the government may take. Views on the ground are mixed.

Most gaming industry analysis currently predicts that the city of Yokohama may very well become the host for Japan’s largest IR in the mid-2020s. Situated in Kanagawa Prefecture as part of Japan’s capital region—with its vast population of tens of millions—almost any major IR operator would love to have a piece of this action; but even should Japan’s IR Implementation Bill pass smoothly through the national legislature, it remains far from clear that Yokohama will actually decide to seek a...

On October 28, 2017, Kinmen Island will hold a referendum in which the residents will be asked if they would support the establishment of casino-based tourism resorts on the island. Kinmen (also known as Quemoy) is a Taiwan-controlled island located off the coast of China, just outside Xiamen harbor. While a yes vote is by no means a guarantee of a future casino on Kinmen, a no vote may spell the end for any hopes of legalizing gambling in Taiwan any time soon.

Asia Gaming Brief is an intelligence service providing up to date market information for worldwide executives on relevant gaming issues in Asia. AGB's extensive network of regional advisors ensures that the intelligence you receive is real, topical and based on fact.

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